DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY

Child and Adolescent Development

Child and Adolescent Development

Introduction

A child, who is born, goes through natural processes of development and growth as they become productive, happy and healthy members of the adult society. The four main dimensions of growth for a child are psychological, physical, social, emotional, cognitive, gender and sexual identity. The physical growth and development in a child is the most apparent. A child's body develops and grows as changes in weight and height are evident. The appearance of a child also shows considerable change during puberty. The growth is also reflected in strengthening of physical abilities as they progress towards attaining adulthood, which includes activities that involve crawling, running, walking, writing etc…

Child and adolescent development is the study of the different processes assumed to influence human growth and development from birth through adolescence. Development takes place within multiple domains (e.g., cognitive, physical, socio-emotional). Yet the processes underlying development can be common across the different domains of development.

Discussion

Although human beings grow and develop at different paces, there are some aspects of development that are consistent for most, if not all, human beings. This consistency suggests that mortal bodies are designed to grow and develop in a relatively sequential and orderly fashion because the mechanisms responsible for these changes are in-wired. That is these mechanisms are present at birth and are essentially time-released through adolescence and beyond (Rogoff, 2003). For example, an infant will exhibit a grasping reflex when his or her palm is touched. At a later stage, that same infant will develop greater strength and more finely tuned motor skills, such as the ability to pick up and manipulate an amusing toy.

Child and adolescent development researchers seek to identify and understand age-related developmental changes and abilities and how outside influences such as context and culture affect developmental outcomes (Nakkula, 2006). Below are few brief theories which explain and develops understanding of child and adolescent growth.

Psychosexual stages

Sigmund Freud's psychosexual stage of development is one of the best renowned character theories, but furthermore one of the most controversial. According to Freud, character evolves through a sequence of baby steps, in which delight searching powers aim on certain erogenous zones (Muuss, 1996). This is a psychosexual power, or libido, was recounted as the going by car force of behavior.

Psychological Development

Psychological Development presents the best empirical and theoretical work on the development of insight, recollection, dialect, notions, considering, difficulty explaining, met cognition and communal cognition. Piaget's theory of psychological development describes how children construct an understanding of the world by interacting with their physical and social environments (Furth & Wachs, 1975). Children adapt to their environments by developing mental organizations, or schemes, to organize their understanding of the world. Adaptation consists of two processes assimilation and accommodation. Assimilation involves fitting additional information into existing schemes (e.g., a child calling a cat “doggy” because it has four legs and fur). Accommodation involves altering existing schemes to accept further information (e.g., a child altering his or her scheme for “doggy” to include barking ...